The Hands of Fate
by A.G. Hart
Summary: Hart Files. The other CSIs finally meet Grissom's daughter. How will they react when she's kidnapped? Can Sara handle the competition? Story better than summary. GSOC romance? Ch. 22 is revised due to error. Sequel coming. Mild violence & language.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own CSI or any of its characters.

Chapter 1

The young, light brown haired woman walked into the Las Vegas Crime lab. She hadn't stepped foot in the building since that day four months ago when she delivered the letter to Gil Grissom, her father. Since that time she and Grissom had spent as much time as they could together. Which really wasn't a lot since they were both so busy with their jobs. Today, she was here to bring Grissom one of his entomology books he had left at her house. Otherwise, she wouldn't be here.

She stepped up to the front desk. "Is Gil Grissom available?" she asked the woman behind the desk, feeling a small sense of déjà vu.

"May I tell him who's here?" the woman asked.

"Alex Hart," she answered.

The woman picked up a phone and dialed Grissom's extension. After a brief exchange on the phone the woman looked at Alex. "He'll be out in a few minutes. You can wait in the lobby area."

"Ok, thank you," Alex smiled, and started to walk to the lobby.

As she walked, Alex flipped through the book in her hands, not paying attention to where she was going. She thought about how much time Grissom must spend here and wondered why he hadn't asked her to come by sooner. She had wanted to meet some of his co-workers after all he had said about them, but to date, she'd only met two; Greg being the first and Catherine being the second. And her meeting Catherine was purely by accident—a car accident.

It had been about two months ago and Alex's fault. She was pulling into the parking lot of a local spa when sunlight reflected off a windshield of a parked car, temporarily blinding Alex. She never saw Catherine backing out until she hit her.

_This is just what I needed,_ Alex thought as she got out of the car to inspect the damage. "I'm so sorry!" she said, as the slightly older, reddish-blonde haired woman came around her car to inspect the damage. "I didn't see you."

"It's alright," Catherine replied. "You alright?"

"I'm fine," Alex replied. "Are you alright?"

"I'm alright. Looks like the cars aren't so bad either," She said, pointing at the damage, which was nothing more than a small dent. Alex had only hit the corner of the bumper.

"Yeah," Alex agreed. "Let me still give you my information." Alex dug around in her purse and pulled out a pre-filled card with all her information on it. She liked being prepared. She handed it to Catherine.

Catherine looked it and something clicked. She had thought the young woman looked familiar and when she saw her name, she knew. "Gil Grissom's Alex Hart?" Catherine asked.

Alex was taken aback. She really hadn't considered the notion that Grissom had told other people about her. Sometimes it was the obvious that escaped her. "Yes," she replied. "You know Gil?"

"Know him?" Catherine answered. "He's half my life! Catherine Willows, Las Vegas crime lab." She stuck out her hand for Alex to shake.

"Ms. Willows!" Alex excitedly shook her hand. "It's such a pleasure to meet you! Gil's told me so much about you."

"It's all lies," Catherine smiled. "Please, call me Catherine. And I've heard some about you too."

Alex blushed slightly. She knew it was a good sign that Grissom was talking about her. She also knew this opportunity to get another person's perspective on Grissom wouldn't come again soon, and quickly took hold of it. "Would you like to have lunch?"

Now it was Catherine's turn to be taken aback. "Well…" she looked at her watch. She did have a lot of questions about Alex that she never felt comfortable asking Grissom. "Sure," she said. "Where would you like to go?"

An hour later they were sitting, eating salads at a non-descript Vegas restaurant. They had done some get-to-know-you chitchat, but Catherine could feel the questions she really wanted to ask, burning inside.

"So, can I ask you something personal?" Catherine asked.

"Sure, ask anything you want," Alex replied giving her permission.

"What happened between Grissom and your mother?" Catherine got right to the point.

Alex took a drink of her water, pausing for a moment before answering. "The story, as far as I know, is mom went to LA for the summer, where she met Gil. They fell in love. She came back east, found out she was pregnant. Her mother freaked out and isolated her. Mom didn't do so well during the pregnancy so she couldn't really put up much of a fight. She was so mad at my grandmother that she never told her who my father was. She died giving birth. Twenty-something year later I find my mom's old diary and a letter she wrote Grissom. Then I found him." Alex smiled at her succinctness.

Catherine was speechless. She wasn't sure if it was because she didn't know what to say or if it was that there was nothing to say. Grissom had never told her that Olivia had died. "Wow," is all that finally came out.

Alex shrugged then smiled again. "It's life."

Then continued their lunch and shared more about their lives. Since then, they'd actually shared about half a dozen lunches and gotten to know one another pretty well. Alex was not what Catherine had expected. Catherine had thought Alex would've been a younger, female version of Grissom, but that was not the case. Alex did have some of his traits, extremely intelligent, odd sense of humor, and a love of science and order. However, Alex seemed more approachable. Catherine felt as if she could ask Alex anything, a feeling she had never had with Gil.

Alex found Catherine to be everything Gil had said; smart, funny, and a genuinely nice person. At one of their lunches she'd even had a chance to meet Lindsay. Alex had found a friend despite the age difference.

As Alex was walking lost in her remembrance, Greg was also walking down the hall, eying a report. He wasn't paying attention to where he was going either. He was fuming at the fact he had gotten called in on his first Friday off in months. And to top it all off, he had a date, also his first in months. They ran into one another. Greg dropping the report he was holding.

Alex bent down to help pick it up, not seeing whom she bumped into. "Oh! I'm so sorry!"

"My fault." Greg replied, crouching to pick up his report.

Her hand brushed against his, she pulled it away quickly, looking up to see whom she was helping. "I wasn't paying…" her voice trailed off as she saw him.

Greg had finally looked up as well. Their faces were only inches apart. Their eyes met and they held each other's gaze. Both were silent. Neither knew what to say.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Alex and Greg were locked in a silent stare. Finally, Alex spoke up.

"So, is bumping into girls your favorite way to say hi?" Alex smiled playfully and then stood up. There was something about Greg that always made her smile. Maybe it was the fact that despite all his posturing, he was very much a gentleman. So much so that he had broken things off with her despite his feelings, so that she could focus her energies on her relationship with Grissom.

Greg tried not to chuckle as he stood and remembered the night they met. He had bumped into her then, too. "How're you doing, Alex?" he managed to say.

"I'm pretty good, you?" she asked.

"Good. Busy." He replied. He wasn't sure what to say. He had spent the last four months trying to forget her, to move on. He felt she needed the time even if she didn't know it. How much, that was what he didn't know. And now here she was. He had so many mixed emotions that he didn't want to acknowledge; all he wanted was to get back to work. "I've really got to get on this," he said, pointing to the file, trying to excuse himself.

Alex touched his arm, "Greg." But Greg had already started to turn and leave. "Call me, please?" she requested.

He wanted to say yes, to grad her and kiss her right there, but didn't. "I don't know," he replied and walked away.

Alex sighed and finished making her way to the lobby. She sat there turning the pages of the book, wishing her conversation with Greg had gone better. Soon, Grissom came in.

"Hi Gil," she greeted him. She stood and held out the book. "Here's your book."

"Alex, thank you for the book. How're you?" he replied, taking it.

"Pretty good, thank you. Yourself?"

"Busy," Grissom answered.

"Seems everyone around here is," she said, slightly under her breathe.

"What?" Grissom didn't understand.

"Nothing," Alex dismissed him. "Well, if you're busy I won't ask you for a tour." She smiled at him. She really did want a tour. She'd heard a lot about the Las Vegas crime lab while she studied at Quantico and it peaked her interest.

"Another time," Grissom replied. "I really do need to get back to work."

"Ok," she said knowing that they had dinner plans in a couple days.

He walked her back into the hall. "Good evening," she said, giving him a hug.

Just as she did, Sara and Nick turned down the hall. They were discussing a case. Sara stopped when she saw Grissom, his arms wrapped around a young woman. Sara didn't recognize her at first, but as she pulled away, Sara saw her face. Even though it was his daughter, Sara was still jealous. _Just another woman for him to love instead of me,_ she thought, wishing at the same time that she hadn't.

"Who's the hottie with Grissom?" Nick asked, seeing the same thing Sara was. Nick, however, didn't recognize Alex. He'd only seen a few pictures of her on Greg's camera phone

"That," Sara said with great emphasis, "Is Grissom's daughter."

Nick looked at Sara in disbelief. "No way!"

Sara just nodded her head.

"I've got to met her!" Nick hurried down the hall so he could be introduced. Sara followed.

Alex was just walking away when Nick got to where she and Grissom were standing. "Hey Gris," Nick said. Then looked toward Alex. "Do I get an introduction?"

Sara was a step behind and when Grissom saw her, he asked the question with his expression. Sara again just nodded; Nick was aware it was his daughter. And yes, she'd like an introduction too.

Sara had been dying to meet Alex. She knew a lot about her. After she found out Alex worked at the Bureau, she had asked some of her friends there about Alex. Turns out Alex was everything Sara expected but didn't want her to be, a model agent, top in her field, hard working, and just _perfect_. _She needs flaws,_ Sara thought to herself.

"Alex," Grissom called to her and she turned around. "Let me introduce you to a couple people before you go."

Alex smiled. "Ok."

"Alex, this is Nick Stokes and Sara Sidle," Grissom said as each held out their hand to her. "Nick, Sara, this is my daughter, Alex Hart."

Alex's heart skipped a beat when he said "daughter." It was the first time she could ever remember him using that word when speaking about her. She'd never really been a daughter before, just a granddaughter. She liked the sound of it. _Daughter._

"Nice to meet you," Alex replied, shaking each hand in turn. "I've heard so much about you. It's nice to finally meet you."

"Yes, nice to meet you, too," Sara spoke first.

"Yes, very nice," Nick smiled that boyish smile of his.

Alex looked at her watch, "Shoot! I've got to get going!"

"What've you got planned?" Grissom asked.

"Oh, I've got to go get Lindsey. I _begged_ Catherine to let her spend the night with me. She's like the little sister I never had!" Alex explained.

"Catherine Willow's Lindsey?" Sara questioned, indignant that Catherine had gotten to know Alex enough to trust her with Lindsey.

"Yes," Alex said, noting the tone of Sara's voice. "I met Catherine by accident a couple months ago."

"Oh," Sara was still not satisfied.

"I really do have to go. Maybe sometime after shift I can cook breakfast for the whole crew. I hear you sometimes do to breakfast together." Alex smiled again.

"That would be great," Nick replied.

Alex saw the look of apprehension on Grissom's face. "Well, if it's ok with the boss," she laughed. "I'll see you later," she finished, gave a little wave and walked away.

"Ok, so about this case," Grissom said to Sara and Nick before they could ask any questions about Alex. Their knowledge of her life would have to come with time, just like his had. And besides, it _was_ a busy night.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Sara knew her reactions weren't proper. She silently scolded herself as she started to search through some evidence she and Nick had collected. She knew she was letting her own feelings for him get in the way. She should be happy for Grissom. Most everyone hopes to have children; god knows she does. Grissom has that now. _It's a good thing,_ she tried to convince herself.

But it had been four months, and _that_ was the introduction she got. Sara felt she deserved more. She had moved, just for him, changed jobs, just for him, spent the last five years here, just for him. And that was all she got. It made her desire to leave even greater, but she knew she never would because of him.

Across the lab table, Nick was also disappointed in his introduction to Alex. He was hoping it would've been a longer introduction, but for a completely different set of reasons. After seeing her in person, Nick now knew why Greg had been pining over her for the past few months. She was hot! And from what he'd been told about her, very intelligent; the perfect combination. _I'm so glad Greg had a date tonight and wasn't here to run into her,_ he thought to himself, not knowing yet that Greg had been called in.

Elsewhere in the lab, Greg tossed the file he was holding onto the table and sat on the nearest stool. He put his head in his hands and sighed. _Of all the luck,_ he thought, shaking his head at his run in with Alex. The one night he was supposed to be off he gets called in, has to cancel a date and then runs into _her_. He knew Papa Olaf would call it fate. Greg just called it bad luck.

He didn't know why he felt this way about her either. He had only spent about 12 hours with her, but she was permanently stuck in his brain. It was probably the fact that she was not the usual type of girl that went for him. Normally he would get the attractive, but not much else club chick, or the super geeky, obsessive-type girl. But Alex, she was different and he knew it from the start.

Of course, the major difference turned out to be that she was Grissom's daughter. He knew he shouldn't let that stop him. But he had just made CSI 1 and didn't want any whispers of favoritism. Not that Grissom even knew what that word meant. _Maybe I should call,_ he thought.

"Greggo," Nick said, interrupting Greg's thoughts. "What are you doing here?"

"Warrick got sick, I got called in." Greg explained.

Nick didn't know if he should bring up the run-in with Alex, but noticed the expression on Greg's face and realized he already knew she'd been there. "I met Alex. Ouch!" Nick playfully shook his hand like he hand burned it.

"Thanks a lot, Nicky," Greg whined.

"What're you working on?" Nick asked, changing the subject.

A few hours later, Grissom's cell phone rang. He was in the middle of examining some evidence, but then he saw it was Catherine and answered.

"Grissom," he said.

"Hey Gris," Catherine sounded worried. "Have you heard from Alex recently?"

"She was here a few hours ago, then left saying she was going to pick up Lindsey," Grissom replied.

"That's just it, she never made it," Catherine explained. "And now I have an upset teenager on my hands. I've tried her cell, but it just goes to voice mail."

A feeling started to rise up from the pit of Grissom's stomach, something he hadn't felt since his first visions of Nick trapped in his clear coffin. "That's not like her," he stated. _Not like her at all,_ he thought.

Even though he'd only know Alex for a few months, there were some things about her that were unmistakable: the first being that she was punctual and the second being that she kept her word. If Alex hadn't shown up to get Lindsay, there was definitely something wrong.

"I know it's not like her," Catherine concurred. "That's why I'm worried."

Before Grissom could respond, the beep indicating he had another call sounded. He looked at the caller ID, it was Brass. "Catherine, I'll have to call you back. It's Brass on the other line."

"Ok, let me know if you hear anything from her," Catherine hung up.

"Grissom," he said, clicking over the line.

"Gris, you're going to want to get down to the warehouse district right away," Brass got right to the point.

"What's going on?" he responded.

"A patrol unit found a car belonging to Alex. The rear end was smashed pretty bad and there's blood inside."

Grissom didn't want to ask, but he couldn't stop himself, "And Alex? Is she alright?"

"There's no body in the car," Brass was trying to be careful with his words. The scene did not look good.

"I'll be there right away," Grissom hung up and the feeling in his stomach started to grow.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Grissom rushed into the lab. "Nick, Sara, you're coming with me."

"What's up?" Nick asked, looking up from the computer.

"I'll explain on the way," Grissom responded. He didn't want Greg involved in this. Grissom knew that he would be able to keep a level head, but wasn't sure Greg could.

"All hands on deck?" Greg asked from his station at a microscope.

"I just need two," Grissom answered. "Let's go."

"But," Sara was about to put up a fight when she saw the look on Grissom's face. She knew something bad had happened. "Ok, let's go."

Grissom was in the driver's seat. Sara was riding shotgun and Nick was in the back. There was silence for the first half of the ride. Nick and Sara were waiting for an explanation. Grissom was focusing on what would need to be done once they got to the scene.

"So what's going on?" Sara finally decided to ask.

"A patrol unit found Alex's car smashed, abandoned and bloodied," Grissom stated. Both Nick and Sara then understood why Grissom didn't want to mention it back at the lab.

"Maybe it was just a car accident?" Nick offered.

"There were no accident reports called in from the area where they found her car and none of the hospitals reported any accident victims coming in in the last few hours," Grissom explained.

Sara wanted to reach out to him, to comfort him. But she knew her comforting would not be accepted. It was just like when Nick was taken, Grissom was only focused on getting Nick back. He wasn't worried about himself. _Damn him and his pride,_ she thought to herself.

They pulled up to the scene and the first thing that Grissom noticed was the street. There were almost no streetlights. Most of the lights on the scene were the flashing police lights. _Surely she would know better than to stop here, _Grissom thought.

Next he noticed the car. Its rear end was smashed in, but there was no car behind it. _A possible hit and run?_ He wondered. But the car looked parked on the side of the road, like someone had pulled off. The driver's side window looked like it was down, but as Grissom got closer he noticed it was actually broken out.

Grissom swept the ground with his flashlight. There were small blood smears from the driver's side door heading towards the back of the car. They lead right to where the car that hit hers would have been.

"I want pictures of everything, samples of every hair and fiber bagged and tagged. And every inch of this street combed for a quarter mile in both directions," Grissom ordered.

"We know the drill, boss," Nick responded, trying to reassure Grissom.

"Then get to it," Grissom barked.

Grissom started taking pictures of the blood smears. He collected a few samples. Next he moved to the inside of the car. There was blood on the driver's seat and the inside of the door. He took a sample of the blood; again needing to make sure it was hers.

Her purse was spilled out on the passenger side floor. It looked like it had been jolted from its place on the seat next to her. He took a picture of the contents that had spilled and then picked it up. Her wallet and credit cards were all there. Her cell phone and FBI identification were missing. Grissom knew something wasn't right.

He started to look around the driver's side seat. He noticed the pieces of tempered glass surrounding and on the seat. The window had been broken from the outside. As he was gathering some into a bag, he saw it. It was a gun shell. Things were getting worse by the minute.

"Brass!" Grissom called out from his crouched position.

"What did you find?" Brass asked.

Grissom raised the shell. "We need to get out a missing persons report as soon as possible, see if anyone witnessed anything. I don't think canvassing the area will be good enough. No one would stick around out here."

"You know as soon as we do the Bureau is going to take over. They always do for one of their own." Brass replied, wanting Grissom to be aware of the consequences of his action. "And they are going to be pissed we didn't call them first."

"I know they'll try." Grissom knew all too well. But it was still his case, his jurisdiction, and his daughter. "Plus, we need them. WE need to know any of her recent cases, anyone that's threatened her."

"I'll get on it," Brass said. He turned to walk away, dialing a number on his phone.

Grissom continued to search the seat. He noticed a small hold partway up the seat. He shined his flashlight in the hole and thought he saw something. He got out his tweezers and fished out what he was looking at. It was the bullet, too smashed from hitting the seat frame to be able to get a ballistics match. _It was a thru and thru,_ he confirmed to himself.

"Grissom!" It was Sara. She was searching the area behind the car.

Grissom stood up. "What is it, Sara?" he questioned, walking to where she was.

She held up the ring. "It must have slipped off," she replied, handing it to Grissom.

He looked at it under his flashlight and noticed a small piece of skin caught in the setting. "Or maybe she left us a clue."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Grissom drove back to the lab alone. Sara and Nick got a ride back with Brass. Grissom needed time to think, to process. He'd always been able to distance himself from a case, but this time he was failing.

He had started looking forward to their meetings about a month after their initial lunch. He was very apprehensive when they first met but Alex put him at ease, just like Olivia had. She was smart, independent, and creative. He could tell from almost the first time that they met that she wasn't using him for therapy. She wasn't looking to recreate her childhood. She wasn't looking for a father. She was only looking for him. And just as he once could never imagine life with her, he now couldn't imagine life without her.

_I just need to keep perspective,_ he told himself. _When people get emotional is when they make mistakes._

When he got back to the lab, he knew what he had to do. He needed the samples processed and fast. And Greg was the best.

"Greg, I need you to process these for DNA, ASAP," Grissom said, handing Greg the evidence he had collected.

"Do you have something for comparison?" Greg asked, taking the evidence.

Grissom just handed Greg another file. Greg looked at it and his face went white.

"Alex? Is she ok?" Greg's heart was racing.

"We don't know. That's why we need those samples processed." Grissom responded. He saw the fear on Greg's face. "She'll be alright," he added, trying but not succeeding to make Greg feel better.

"I'm on it," Greg said and got to work.

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Alex started to awaken. Her mind was slowly coming into focus, trying to remember what had happened. But the pain made it hard to concentrate.

She slowly opened her eyes, only to find the room she was in was dimly lit. The singular light seemed to be coming from the cracks around the room's door and it only fell part way into the room. No more than the shadows reached her.

As she grew more aware of her surroundings, she took stock of herself. She was sitting in what felt like a wooden chair. Her arms were bound behind her. _It doesn't feel like rope,_ she thought, trying to figure out what her captor had used. It was more solid and felt thicker than rope. _I bet it's duct tape,_ she reasoned. She looked down, trying to focus on her legs in the darkness. They were bound as well. _Yup, duct tape,_ she confirmed.

She could feel her arm throbbing and looked down at it. It was bandaged and that's when she remembered what happened. She had been on her way to Catherine's house when she took a wrong turn. She still was unsure of the city streets. She had pulled to the side of the road to look at the map. She didn't really like the area she was in, but she didn't want to get more lost.

As she was searching for the map, she felt her car jerk forward and her purse spilled. She looked in her rear view mirror to see that someone had hit her. _Idiot,_ she scolded the car behind her. _I had my parking lights on._

She bent over to get her cell phone and her pre-filled insurance cards, which she kept behind her FBI identification. Just as she grabbed them, she heard a loud noise and felt the pieces of her window hit her.

"What the fu.." she started to shout, when she saw the muzzle of the gun. The idiot had a gun pointed at her inside the car. _Damn it,_ she thought, knowing she didn't have hers with her. She had left it at home, not wanting to take it along for her evening with Lindsey.

"Out," a man's voice said.

She looked at the gearshift and moved slightly. The keys were still in the ignition. He noticed and knew what she was thinking.

He pushed the gun up to her temple. "Out. Bring the keys and no funny stuff."

Without hesitation, she moved in a flash and grabbed for the gun. This startled the idiot and the gun went off, hitting her in the arm.

"Now look at what you made me do!" He scolded her. "I didn't want to have to do this," he sneered, pulling out a hypodermic from his back pocket.

Alex was in shock. She'd never been shot before. She was too concerned over her wound to notice what the guy outside her car was doing.

He stuffed the gun in the waistband of his pants and grabbed Alex by the hair.

"Ow!" Alex howled, grabbing at his hand with hers, but it was no use.

He tilted her head, exposing her neck. Then stuck the needle in, pressing the plunger down. She could feel her muscles weakening as he pulled her out of the car. That's when she noticed he had gloves on. _No fingerprints here,_ she thought. She knew she could scratch all she wanted, but her fingers were coming with her. _At least for now they were. _ They wouldn't be of any use in _finding_ her.

With the last ounce of strength she could muster, she removed the ring and hid it in her hand. She took a swipe at her attacker, making it seem like she scratched him with her fingernails. Then she dropped her ring. She hoped it had hit its mark and then everything went black, until now.

After remembering how she got here, she scolded herself. _You're an FBI agent and you couldn't handle this prick? What were you thinking? _But Alex knew she didn't have much field training. Most of her work consisted of sitting behind a desk, sorting through stacks of papers.

Although her training was somewhat useful as she continued to evaluate her situation. She wasn't gagged, so they were probably somewhere isolated. He didn't care if she screamed. She paused and listened intently for any sound that might indicate where they were, but all she could her was the pounding of her head.

She wasn't tied to a bed. Which for her was a good sign. _Maybe his intentions are pure,_ she thought sarcastically. And even if they weren't, if he tried to move her, it might give her an opportunity to fight back.

Her arm hurt like hell where she had been shot, but it was also bandaged. This confused her a little. Why would he care for her if his ultimate intention was to hurt her?

And finally, she wasn't blindfolded, which meant he didn't care if she saw his face. She knew she wasn't going to live.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Grissom was sitting in his office, staring at the crime scene photos. He knew there had to be something he had missed. He was so deep in concentration that he didn't hear Catherine knock on the door.

"Disarming, isn't it?" She asked.

He looked up, startled at her presence. "What's disarming?"

"Knowing that the well-being of your child is question," she answered.

He furrowed his brow, and then slowly nodded. "When Nick was taken, I was worried about a friend, but I could still concentrate. Now that it's Alex…" he couldn't continue.

"It's amazing sometimes, the bond that forms between a parent and a child—even a parent and an adult child. And the emotions that we go through when that bond is threatened."

Catherine had an idea what Grissom was feeling. Her emotions had been put to the test many times with Lindsey. But she couldn't image being in Grissom's shoes at this moment, having a daughter you've just met taken away.

"When did you get here?" Grissom asked, not knowing what else to say.

Before she could answer, Brass knocked on the doorframe. He was with a gentleman in his mid-forties wearing a brown suit, with slightly graying hair.

"Sorry to interrupt Grissom," Brass said. "But this is Special Agent Jacob Thompson."

The gentleman with Brass stepped up and shook Grissom's hand. "It's an honor to meet you, Mr. Grissom," Special Agent Thompson said.

"This is our investigation," Grissom replied, not wanting to stand around and bullshit with Thompson.

"I beg to differ," Thompson handed Grissom a file. "This goes way beyond Special Agent Hart's disappearance."

Grissom took the half-inch thick file and began to flip through the pages. Inside he found information on the kidnapping and murdering of five female law enforcement officers, all eerily resembling Alex and all killed within the last 8 months. The file stated that all were found with their badges stuffed inside their mouths. No doubt a statement about the perpetrator's feelings about female officers.

Then he saw pages on the suspect. Sean Martin, according to the file, started off as a runner for a bookie. He soon became known as a strong arm for his employer. It seems he enjoyed inflicting pain a little more than the average person. He'd been arrested on some simple assaults, but nothing ever seemed to stick.

"What does Alex have to do with this, other than looking like the victims?" Grissom was starting to seethe at the possibility that the Bureau knew Alex was a target.

"Special Agent Hart doesn't look like the other victims," Thompson corrected. "The other victims look like her."

Grissom could feel the anger welling up inside. "What?"

Catherine and Brass just stood there in shock.

Special Agent Thompson had suspected that Grissom and Alex had a relationship. There were rumors going around the Las Vegas Bureau office about the bookworm and the famous entomologist. When Grissom used her first name, Thompson knew there was some truth in the rumors. So he felt an explanation was due.

"It was Hart's first—and last—undercover assignment with the Bureau. She was posing as a book cooker for a bookie who, suffice it to say, did more than just take bets. He was Sean Martin's employer. Martin met Hart and decided she would be his. She was ordered to go along with it and led Martin on for a little while." Thompson paused. He looked at Grissom and if looks could kill, Special Agent Thompson knew he would've been the next to drop.

He continued, "Her cover was compromised after the Bureau found out Martin had been following her. And so she was pulled off the case. Martin was furious that she had tricked him, but no one knew just how much or how far he'd go until it was too late." Thompson paused again. He knew what he had to say next was only going to further cement their loathing of him and the Bureau where Hart was concerned. "Until they found Hart's grandmother murdered."

"I don't understand," Catherine broke in. "Why her grandmother?"

"Apparently, he knew where Hart lived. We believe he went there to kill Hart, but she wasn't home and so he killed the one person who was home."

"So why isn't he behind bars?" Grissom nearly spit.

Thompson pinched the bridge of his nose. He knew these questions were inevitable and he was only answering them out of respect for a fellow law enforcement officer. "He had an alibi that we couldn't prove was lying."

"If he's killed five officers why hasn't he been caught?" Catherine was indignant at his response.

"And why wasn't Alex assigned protection if they knew she was a target?" Grissom's face grew more taut and his words more venomous with every word that came out of Thompson's mouth.

"She requested the transfer to Las Vegas and she felt she would be safe here. She thought in such a large city that he wouldn't be able to find her. She refused protection," Thompson tried to explain. But he could tell it wasn't helping.

Thompson could feel the anger oozing from Grissom, and he didn't like it. "Look," he continued, pointing at Grissom, "I understand you're upset that your girlfriend is missing, but know I'm only here and letting you stay on the case as a courtesy because of your reputation. Serial killers are federal juris--"

"She's _not_ my girlfriend," Grissom shot back, not letting Thompson finish. "She's my daughter."

Thompson went pale. "I-I didn't know."

"Well now you do," Grissom responded. "What else do we need to know about Martin?" Grissom knew from all Special Agent Thompson said and the file contained that they had to find Alex and fast or they wouldn't find her alive.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Greg was working as fast as he could to process all of the items Grissom had brought in: the blood, the ring, the samples from the street. He was trying to concentrate on the process and not to whom the items might belong. But his mind kept wandering to her.

He started to remember the night they met. The dancing had been exhilarating and the kiss was nothing short of spectacular. But he was convinced the number she gave him was a fake. Then there was their happenstance meeting at the diner afterwards, which was more than he could have hoped for. The number wasn't a fake. Of course what surprised him the most was when she fell asleep in his car. He wanted to wake her so he could take her home, but she looked so peaceful sleeping that he didn't want to disturb her.

He carried her into his apartment and laid her on the bed. He covered with a blanket and then went to the couch. He knew he'd be hurting when he woke—his couch was lumpy and just a little too small for him—but she was worth it.

And now, now he might never get the chance to tell her. He hit the desk with his fist in anger. _Damn it all!_

The computer beeped. CODIS had a match for the DNA sample from the ring. Greg read the name on the screen, _Sean Martin_. The further down the screen he read, the more his concern grew.

He printed off the information and rushed to Grissom's office. As he got closer he couldn't hear the words that were spoken, but from the sound of the voices, he knew there was a heated discussion going on. As he got the door he heard Grissom.

"What else do we need to know about Martin?"

"Sean Martin?" Greg, surprised, broke in before anyone else could speak.

"Yes, Sean Martin." Grissom sounded annoyed.

Greg was slightly disappointed. He was hoping he'd have new information. "Well, it was his skin on Alex's ring. But apparently, you already knew that."

"We have a suspect, yes. Thank you, Greg," Grissom replied, dismissing him. Greg took the hint and left.

"Now we know Martin is involved." Grissom continued after Greg had left the room. "How do we find him?"

"When I got the call about Hart, we put the word out we where looking for Martin. We're hoping one of our contacts can give us a starting place," Thompson said, the expression on his face saying more than the words he spoke.

"But?" Grissom pushed.

"But," Thompson sighed. "We've been looking for Martin for eight months and our leads are always a day late and a dollar short. Martin is a very intelligent man."

"Even an intelligent man makes mistakes," Grissom replied. "What we need to find is that mistake."

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Alex's body was throbbing. Whatever he had used to drug her sure left one hell of a hang over. She was still finding it hard to focus her mind. She knew she had to focus though; her life depended on it.

Even though she hadn't heard a sound from outside, she decided to hedge her bets and scream. She knew if she made it through this and found out help was just a yell away and she hadn't tried, she'd feel like a fool.

She took a deep breath and yelled with all her might, "Help!"

The sound reverberated in the room and she finally heard a noise from outside the room. It sounded like a startled jerk.

"Sleeping beauty awakes," she heard a man's muffled voice say through the door. "But no one can hear you," the voice taunted.

Then, the door to the room opened and the room filled with light. The light was so bright and unexpected it caused Alex to instinctively shut her eyes and turn her head.

"Tsk, tsk, Special Agent Hart," the voice said, dripping with venom. "I thought you'd run to me with open arms, not shield your eyes from me!" The voice chortled.

Alex thought the voice sounded familiar. She slowly opened her eyes and squinted so her eyes could adjust. The she saw him.

"Sean!" There was only terror in her voice. "How did you know I was in Vegas?"

Sean was one of the few things she never did share with Grissom. She didn't want to remember him, let alone talk about him. He was one of the few things that made her truly afraid. He was smart, although most of the time he relied on his physical strength. He was also a charmer. He always reminded her a little of Ted Bundy. And anyway, how do you bring up the man who killed your grandmother because you weren't home?

"It's not hard, babe," he sounded as if he were having a casual conversation with an old friend. "People talk and, I mean, you _are_ a federal agent. You didn't even change your name!" He laughed again.

"But when you grabbed me, how did you know where I was? I didn't even know where I was!" She was trying to get as much information out of him as she could.

He laughed in response and walked closer to her. When he got right in front of her, he squatted so that they were eye to eye. "You really are a shitty investigator," he sneered. "I've been following you for weeks, just looking for an opportunity. I'm surprised you haven't noticed!"

_Wow, I am a shitty investigator,_ she scolded herself at the thought she hadn't noticed him. _No wonder I've always done better behind a desk._

He could see her thoughts in her facial expression. "Yeah, that's right, Alex. _Weeks._ And you've never seen me." He pulled out a hunting knife from the back of his waistband and slowly turned it over in his hands. "But me, I've seen a lot."

He moved so that he was standing behind her. He placed the blade on her cheek. The cool metal sent a chill through Alex's body. "I've seen you and your new boyfriend out all over town."

_Shit!_ She thought. _He's seen Grissom and me. _"He's not my boy-" she started to explain but he continued as if she hadn't said anything, placing his free hand over her mouth, so she couldn't say anything else. He didn't like interruptions.

"And your girlfriend, she's hot for an older chick. I didn't know you liked to play both sides of the field. We could've had fun. Maybe I'll pay her a visit after you and I have…" he paused, trying to think of a witty way to put. He put his mouth right next to her ear and finished his thought, "Settled our differences."


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Grissom and his team started sifting through the evidence. Nick and Sara were assigned the car. Greg was still running the DNA samples. Grissom and Catherine started to study the file on Sean Martin to see if there was anything in his pattern that they might be able to use. Brass, the LVPD and a few FBI agents were canvassing the area around where the car was found with pictures of Martin to see if anyone had seen him.

Nick and Sara started with the trunk area of the car. The damage was higher up on the trunk, indicating that the car had been hit with a vehicle that had a higher up hood, such as a truck or SUV. There also didn't seem to be any paint from the vehicle that struck Alex's car anywhere in the damage.

"You think the perp had a grill guard?" Nick asked.

"That's certainly what it looks like," Sara replied. "Think it narrows our search any?"

Nick just shook his head. "It explains how the perp was able to drive away. He rams her from behind, his car protected by the grill guard. It smashes up her car, but his has barely a scratch."

"Makes sense," Sara agreed. They continued to work, but didn't find anything else that was useful. It was disappointing.

Grissom found the files on Martin's crimes disturbing. Martin had snatched his victims, with little fanfare. Normally there wasn't any sign of abduction. _He's already broken his pattern,_ Grissom thought. The victims were found all found within 72 hours of their last sighting. _He doesn't keep them long._ The condition of the victims when found was horrible. Each was beaten, there were signs of torture, broken bones, and strangulation marks. But strangulation was not the cause of death, a single gunshot wound was. It wasn't the condition of the victims that Grissom found disturbing. It was the fact that this was the man who had Alex.

"So, he has to be somewhere where he can make a lot of noise but no one can hear," Catherine thought aloud as she read the files.

"Which is a lot of places in Vegas," Grissom replied. "If there still in Vegas."

Catherine's frustration was getting the best of her. "Don't they have any idea where he might be? They have to know _at least one_ of his contacts!"

"Catherine," Grissom tried to soothe her. "The FBI is doing all it can."

"You don't honestly believe that!" She retorted.

"No, I don't," he was being truthful. "But we have to stay calm or we're not going to be of any use to Alex."

Catherine knew Grissom was right, but it didn't quell her indignation.

Special Agent Thompson walked into Grissom's office. "Grab your kits," it was an order. "They found the motel where he's been staying. I assumed you'd want to be the one to process

it."

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"Where did we go wrong?" Sean asked the bound Alex.

"There was never any we," Alex stated.

"Aw, but what about all the time we spent together?" he asked, trying to sound hurt.

"I was just doing my job," she replied.

"Well, if you get paid to spend time with someone," he questioned, moving back to his squatting position in front of her. "You know what that makes you?" he smirked.

"Well, I thought that was the only type of woman you got?" she shot back at him.

He furrowed his brow and stood up. He swung his arm, connecting the back of his hand with her check. He hit her so forcefully that she fell over, chair and all. She thought she heard a crack, like her cheekbone breaking.

"You should watch your tongue," he reprimanded her. "I'm the one in control now."

"If you were really in control," she chided him, "You wouldn't need me to be bound."

He half smiled, seemingly amused at her remark. Then, he swiftly kicked her in the ribs. She tried not to flinch. She didn't want to give him the satisfaction.

"I don't need you to be bound," he corrected her. "I _like_ it when you're bound. It's symbolic."

"Symbolic of what?" she humored him.

"It's symbolic of the fact that you won't allow yourself to be free," he said, as if revealing some deep insight into her soul. He lifted her and set her upright in the chair again.

"Free from what?" she didn't quite understand where he was going.

"From the things that bind you, of course," he said, being enigmatic. After a slight pause he continued, "Now, you need to get some rest before the fun really begins." He walked out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

Alex was once again left in the darkness. Her only thoughts were of Gil and Greg. She would never get her second date with Greg. She hadn't gotten to celebrate Father's Day with Gil. She'd never get to say good-bye to either of them. Tears started to form at the corners of her eyes. She knew she wasn't going to make it out of this alive.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Brass, along with a couple FBI agents, made sure the motel room was clear before Catherine, Grissom, Sara and Nick entered. The motel room was small, dark and dirty. It was probably known as seedy on its best day. But today it was at its worst and seedy was giving it too much credit.

The carpet, if it could even be called that, was yellowed and stained. The chair in the corner was faded and uneven. The bed had a clear dip in the middle, not so much from wear but from lack of care. The dresser and nightstand were chipped, with a couple drawer handles missing. And the bathroom was mildewed, the toilet ran and the shower leaked. The room had definitely seen better days.

The first thing Grissom noticed was that even though the room was dirty, the objects in it were organized. The bed was made. Clothes were hanging in what passed for the closet. There was a pad of paper and a pen on the nightstand, arranged so that the pen was perfectly perpendicular across the pad and the pad was squarely in front of the telephone. In the bathroom, his personal items were arranged in perfect order by size. When the drawers were checked, all the clothes were folded neatly.

"This guy has issues," Nick observed.

As the CSIs processed they room, they collected fingerprints, hair and blood samples and everything else they found. Grissom had been drawn to the note pad. He looked at it carefully and noticed there was still some indention on the top sheet, although there was no ink. He got out a pencil and started shade over the indention. It was a partial address from the old business district.

"Brass," Grissom called him over.

"What'd you find Gris?" Brass asked as he approached.

"A partial address. Write this down," Grissom proceeded to give him the partial address.

"You know there's probably twenty buildings this address could belong to," Brass was being realistic.

"It's a start," Grissom said.

Brass started to call headquarters to get a few patrol units to check out the buildings when Thompson came over.

"What are you doing?" he demanded to know.

"We're going to sent some patrol units to look for an address," Brass answered.

"Let me see that," Thompson said, pulling the pad of paper out of Brass's hand. His facial expression changed.

_You would be a shitty poker player, _Grissom thought, noting Special Agent Thompson's lack of facial control.

"What do you know that you're not telling us?" Brass insisted.

Slowly, the pieces clicked in Grissom's head. "You used her for bait, to draw him out. How long as he been in Vegas?"

Thompson looked pissed at being so transparent. "We've known he was here since last week." He quickly added, "She was assigned a tail."

"Then how did he get her?" Grissom could feel the anger rising.

"The tail was following her that night," Thompson got defensive at Grissom's anger. "But they got a flat tire. They knew where she was headed, they figured they would catch up to her."

"She never made it," Catherine stated, although she knew everyone was aware of that fact.

"It was fifteen minutes," Thompson offered. "The only thing we can figure is she took the wrong exit and got lost. Martin must've been following her too."

"So what's the address?" Grissom seethed, trying to contain himself.

"One of our contacts had mentioned that Martin was spotted in that neighborhood. We searched a lot of the buildings, but didn't find anything at the time," Thompson was making excuses.

"Just answer me this," Grissom asked, as they gathered their kits and evidence to leave. "Did she even know he was in town?"

"To the best of my knowledge," Thompson answered, "No."

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"What's the news?" Martin answered his cell phone.

"They just left the motel room," the voice on the other end answered.

"Then I'd better get to work," Martin responded.

"Why not just move?" the voice offered.

Martin hung up. He didn't want dignify the question with a response. Obviously his rat didn't know anything about catching mice.

He turned the phone off; he didn't want any distractions. He would know when he was out of time.

He knocked on the door, "Can I come in?"

"If I said no would it matter?" Alex yelled back through the door.

Sean just laughed and opened the door. Alex had dried blood on her cheek from their earlier chat, but a look of determination in her eyes.

"Awww, you still think there's a way out of this, don't you?" he said playfully. Then his face contorted into an evil grin. "We can change that."


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Alex, now lying on the floor with her arms bound behind her and her legs bound together, was engulfed in pain. She ached so badly that just the displacement of air from his blows caused pain. He didn't even have to touch her. She had given in to the pain and was trying to sob, but no sound came. Her breathing was labored and she could barely move.

But the infliction of pain wasn't purely physical. It was psychological as well. Sean knew things that Alex didn't and taunted her with that knowledge. If she made it through this, and that chance was looking more remote with every minute, there were would be one that would have hell to pay.

Sean stopped for a moment and walked out of the room. When he came back in, he got down on his hands and knees, so that his face was right in front of hers. She heard a metal clank when his hands hit the ground and looked. It was a gun.

"This can end now," Sean sneered. "All you have to do is say the word." He waved the gun a little in front of her eyes.

She was ready for it to end. She had suffered more pain than she thought was humanly possible, but she would not give him the satisfaction of breaking her. Alex gathered whatever strength she had and spit in his face.

He wiped away what little bit of liquid she had managed. "Have it your way," he replied and kissed her forehead. Then stood up, stuck the gun in the back of his waistband, and continued.

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Nick and Sara stayed behind at the motel and finished processing the room. Grissom and Catherine along with Brass and the FBI agents went to join the patrol units in the search for the address on the pad of paper.

Before they left, Brass spoke with the motel clerk who stated that Martin had been driving a black Isuzu Trooper with grill guard. This confirmed what Nick and Sara had discovered. They also now had a vehicle to look for along with the address.

It took them longer than expected to get to the old business district. The expressways were clogged with traffic in the city that never sleeps. Even their sirens didn't help.

They started searching on foot, trying every door on every building that contained the partial address. It was obvious that some of the buildings hadn't seen life in many years. These weren't given much more than a passing glance. Some had their door chains or windows broken. These were searched more thoroughly.

Just as they were entering one building, Brass's cell phone rang. Catherine and Grissom stopped what they were doing and stared. They were hopeful it was news of Alex's whereabouts.

"Brass," he answered. He nodded as the person on other end said something. "We're on our way." He hung up.

Catherine and Grissom just stared at Brass, wanting to know what was said.

"They found the vehicle. It's about two blocks up." Brass answered their questioning look.

The trio ran down the road, finding LVPD and FBI agents already there. The building was an old warehouse, mostly cement and steel. Some of the agents were just about to bust down the door.

Somewhere floors above, a light flashed. Sean noticed it out of the corner of his eye. _They're in,_ the light confirmed.

"Looks like the party's almost over," he pouted, and then gave one more swift kick to her ribs.

He removed the gun from his waistband and pointed it at her.

Floors below, just inside the door, they heard a shot echo through the building.

"He's here," Thompson said.

"And he knows we're here," Grissom added.

Some of them raced up the stairs, others scattered out, looking to block any escape avenues. But little did they know, escape was not an item on tonight's menu. As the lead person rounded the top of the first flight of stairs, he tripped over an unseen wire and fell. A small explosion followed, burning the lead person and knocking over a few more.

"The building's booby-trapped!" a patrol officer yelled into his radio, so his comrades in the other part of the building would be warned.

They slowly started back up the stairway. A few people broke off at every floor to search. The found a few more of the traps, but were lucky enough to not set them off.

As they rounded the top of the third flight of stairs, shots whizzed past them. They weren't sure where they had come from at first, as they couldn't see anyone. They backed down behind the stairwell wall.

Cautiously, Brass took the lead. More shots were fired. This time he saw where they were coming from. Martin was firing from behind a door halfway down the hall. He pointed in the direction of the shots. Then Brass had a plan. He figured if he could stay along the wall, the door would hide him.

Two of the officers with them had on bulletproof vests. Brass motioned for them to come up to the front.

"You two need to lay down some cover fire. We're going to try and get closer," Brass ordered. They nodded in understanding.

Brass started around the corner again. This time when shots were fired at him, he and the officers returned fire. He crept along the wall, inching closer to Martin.

Sean saw Brass slinking along the wall and fired in his direction but purposely missed. Brass paused his forward movement and fired back. Sean hadn't planned on making it out alive. He was just trying to delay them long enough that Alex wouldn't either. He had already killed five officers and now he had a federal agent dying behind him. He knew they wouldn't let him live. He was just wallowing in their anguish, knowing they were so close but still so far away. His life was worth knowing that they'd find her, just moments after death, knowing had they been quicker she might have lived.

The exchange of gunfire went on, with Brass inching his way forward. Sean did his best to slow Brass down without actually hurting him. He didn't want to kill anyone else, just Alex. And due to her position, he wasn't quite sure where he'd hit her. He was just trying to make sure she'd bled out.

Finally, Brass was close enough to get a clean shot and Sean knew it. He only had two bullets left anyway. He made one last dash past the door and fired his last two bullets. Brass hit him dead in the heart and his body fell to the ground.

"Man down!" Brass called. "Get EMS up here right away!"

As Brass called out Grissom and Catherine rushed past the rest of the officers. They knew Alex was behind the door Martin was guarding.

Grissom was through the first door and didn't see anyone. He noticed the light flashing. _He must have had the door rigged to know when we got here,_ Grissom deduced. He also noticed the second door.

He grabbed the door handle, but it was locked. He gave a swift kick to the lock area and the door busted open.

Alex was lying lifeless and still bound in the middle of the floor, surrounded by blood. Her body was broken and bruised. Grissom dropped to his knees and for the first time he could remember, tears started to form.


	11. Chapter 11

Author's note: This chapter is from Grissom's POV. And the poem's mine.

Chapter 11

I don't understand how this happened. Four months ago my life was, well, it was my life. And now I feel like a stranger in my own skin. How did this happen? How did it end up this way?

A child I never knew I had, that I now have no more. What hand of fate would be so cruel?

And what's this that I feel? Are those tears? I can't even remember the last time I cried. But how could any man not cry at the sight of his only child in such a condition as this?

She's bound like a criminal. Beaten like a rag doll. She's hardly recognizable.

The bullet that monster received was too good for him. If only he were still alive, he'd come to learn the meaning of the word pain.

Alexandria, why did it have to come to this? Your mother was taken from me too soon, and now—you.

Goodnight sweet child, I hardly knew you.

But, my sweet child, our love was true.

The brief moments we got to share

The few times I got to hold you near

They brightened my days and my nights

And weakened my resolve to fight

This feeling inside I have seldom known

But it you have freely shown

So as I stand here, while in death you lie

I shake my fists and have to ask why

Why did Fate deign our paths to cross

Only for us to suffer such a great loss

And with whom would I have to deal

So that your place I might steal

For my heart cannot go on

Without its light from your sun

But your lot I cannot take

So there is only one choice I can make

To go on with you in my heart

Of which, you will always be the biggest part.

So goodnight sweet child, my love will stay true

Waiting for the day, when I'll again be with you.

"Medic!" It was Catherine voice. She was kneeling next to Alex. "She's alive!"


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Catherine pulled out a pocketknife and cut the tape that bound Alex's wrists and ankles. She rolled her unto her back. "I said get EMS here NOW!" Catherine impatiently yelled.

Grissom scrambled over to where Alex lay and grabbed her hand. "Alex? Can you hear me?" he softly said to her.

Alex seemed to stir at the sound of her name. Her lips moved, but no sound was coming out.

Grissom moved so his ear was closer to her lips. "Alex?"

She started to speak again, this time he heard her, although her words came out as barely a whisper. "I-I love you."

She exhaled one more time and her breathing stopped. Grissom immediately started CPR. He'd barely begun, when EMS pushed him out of the way and took over. Grissom sat there on the floor, watching them, praying to whatever deity could hear him, _Please let her live. _He nervously ran his fingers through his graying hair and let out a deep breath.

A couple tenuous minutes later, she started breathing again. An EMS put an oxygen mask on her. They moved swiftly, but carefully down the stairs to get her to the ambulance and rushed her to the hospital with a police escort.

The next hours were a blur for everyone involved. There was the ride to the hospital. There were many surgeries, a broken wrist, broken leg, punctured lung, bruises, and lacerations. And then, after the she had been put back together, she slipped into a coma. Now all anyone could do was wait.

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The sunlight fell gently on her face. The warmth tickled her cheek and started to awaken her. She slowly opened her eyes, afraid she might find she was still lying on the cement floor.

At first all she could see was a blur of color. The light hurt her eyes, as they hadn't been open in days. As her sight adjusted to the light, she saw flowers and balloons all around her. She smiled slightly to herself, _They found me._

As she looked around, she saw a figure sitting in a chair next to the wall. He appeared to be sleeping. She recognized him immediately, even though his face was turned from her.

She tried to call out to him, but her first attempted was nothing more than a hoarse whisper. She cleared her throat and tried again. This time she was successful. "Gil?"

The figure in the chair stirred. Grissom looked at her, with relief in his eyes. "Alex?"

She smiled. "Gil!" Tears started to form. She too was relieved and happy.

He stood up and stretched for a brief moment, then went over and sat on the side of her bed. "How're you?" He smiled back at her.

"I'm alive," she started to laugh, but the movement caused her pain and she winced. "How about you?" Then, noticing his unkempt appearance she asked, "How long have you been here?"

He paused before answering, "I'm doing much better now. And I've been here for about three days."

Her eyes widened in surprise. "Three days? Is that how long I've been out?"

"We were worried about you," Grissom replied. Then he thought better of his response. "I was worried about you."

"How—how did you find me?" she asked.

"Special Agent Thompson," Grissom answered. He noticed the change in her demeanor when he said his name. "How did you know I found you?"

She smiled again. "I remember, in a brief moment of lucidity, hearing you call my name."

She moved her hand closer to his, noticing for the first time that it was in a cast. She lightly placed her hand on his. The human contact finally seemed natural to him. She started to tear-up again. She turned her ahead away, not wanting him to see her cry.

Once she gained her composure she turned back to him and asked, "What about Martin? Did you get him?"

Grissom nodded. Then he added, "He's dead."

There was a pause. She didn't know how to respond. She was relieved, but felt guilty at her relief. A person, no matter how vile, had lost his life.

"Now that your awake, I should go get the doctor," Grissom finally broke the silence.

"Ok," she said and quickly added, "Can you ask people not to visit for a couple days? I need some time before I start entertaining." She had a particular person in mind. Although she wanted to see him, she needed time to gather her thoughts.

Grissom understood. "Will do," he replied and left to get the doctor.

When she was by herself, Alex let out some silent sobs and her tears finally spilled over. Her emotions were a roller coaster ride. She was disturbed by what had happened, relieved she had been found, sad someone had to lose his life, and excited she still had hers. It had been one hell of a week so far for her and as soon as she was able, she was going to make sure it would be much, much worse for someone else.

Little did she know, Grissom was one step ahead of her. Her change in expression at the mention of Thompson's name caused him great concern. After he spoke with the doctor, he made a call.

"Hey Gris," Sara answered her cell phone.

"Do you still have contacts at the Bureau?" Grissom replied.

"Yeah, I still have a few," Sara said.

"Good. I need you to see what you can find out for me."


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Not long after she awakened, Alex gave Grissom her blessing to leave. He would have stayed had she asked, but she knew he was probably itching to get back to work. Plus, the doctor had some tests to run.

A few hours later, he walked into the hospital carrying a yellow rose. No one really took notice of him. The staff had seen him around and figured he belonged. He didn't need to ask directions, he knew exactly where he was going.

He had visited Alex's room many times in the last few days, although he had never made it past the thresh hold. He had to come, though, he felt drawn to her. But he didn't feel he had any right to enter the room. He wasn't family; he was really barely an acquaintance. He also didn't want Grissom to see him.

This time was different, though. When he looked into the room, Grissom was nowhere to be found, and Alex was lying there so peacefully, but all alone. _Maybe I can go in, just for a minute,_ he thought to himself and then nervously entered the room.

He looked around at all the flowers and then cautiously walked over to her. He placed the rose on her bedside table. He was glad she was in a coma at this very moment. He didn't know how he'd explain why he was there. He looked intently at her, taking mental note of all her bruises and scars.

_How to do people do this to each other?_ It wasn't a new thought to him. He'd seen many battered and bruised bodies in his years with CSI. But when it was someone he knew, it always struck a cord, especially since the incident.

He walked over to the window and stared out for a moment, lost in thought. She slowly awoke and noticed the shadow across her bed. She turned her head to look at who was making it, but it was hard to tell.

"Excuse me, sir?" she said, trying to get the figure's attention.

Startled, he turned around. "Hey," was all he could think to say.

She looked at him. He looked familiar, but she was having problems placing him. "Do I know you?" she questioned.

He thought about telling a fib, but knew it would sooner or later get back to him. "Nick Stokes, from the crime lab," he smiled. "We met the other day."

When he smiled, she remembered him. _He does have a nice smile,_ she thought to herself, and then wondered what he was doing here. "Yes, I remember now," she gave a weak smile back. "What are you—?"

"Doing here?" he finished her sentence. "To tell you the truth, I'm not really sure." He gave a little shrug. "I thought you were—"

"Still in a coma?" it was her turn to finish a sentence. He nodded. "You obviously haven't spoken to Gil today. I came out of it early this morning."

"That's good," he replied, feeling very awkward. "Well, I should be going." He started for the door.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the rose. "Did you bring that?" she said, reaching for it with her right hand.

He blushed a little and nodded. "A yellow rose is the symbol of friendship."

"It's beautiful," she said, placing it next to her nose to smell the sweet scent. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," he replied and started for the door again.

"Why don't you tell me why you're really here before you go?" she queried, stopping him dead in his tracks. He turned back around and looked at her.

She gave him a knowing look and then he gave her an explanation. "I understand what you're going through," he started. "I was abducted and buried alive by a-a…" he was searching for the right word.

"Lunatic?" she offered.

"He wasn't crazy. He was just…angry. Evidence got his daughter put away for five years and he couldn't handle it," Nick said.

"Well, I was abducted by a lunatic," she smiled, trying to make a joke.

He let out a little laugh, relaxing some. "You seem alright with all this."

She sighed a deep sigh. "I don't think I'll ever be alright again, but I'm alive. And that's something to be thankful for."

Nick nodded. He understood completely. "Knowing you've been through something similar," he returned to his explanation. "Caused me to feel, I don't know how to put it," he shook his head, not being able to find the right words.

"A kinship?" she said.

"That's one way to put it," he replied. "A kinship with you, even before talking to you."

"Trauma victims," she shrugged her shoulders and arms.

"Yeah," he winced. "Trauma victims."

They continued to talk, sharing more about their lives. They had come to find out about all they had in common _was_ their trauma and a favorite band here and there.

After about an hour, Nick excused himself. He had to get ready for his shift, plus he didn't want to be here when Grissom returned. He was glad he had come. _Maybe Alex and I can help each other heal_, he thought as he walked out of the hospital, a little lighter in spirit.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Sara had just come on shift and was walking down the hall when she noticed Grissom's office light was on. She peered in.

"Grissom?" she questioned.

He looked up from his desk, "Hey Sara."

"Alex doing better," it was more of a statement then a question. She knew Alex must be doing better or he wouldn't be here.

He nodded. "Have you found anything out?"

"That's actually why I stopped by when I saw your light on. I found out some very interesting things about our friend Special Agent Thompson."

Grissom cocked one eyebrow. He was all ears.

"Turns out, there is bad blood between Alex and Thompson. He was her superior back in Virginia when she was on an undercover assignment. That is where she met Martin. Thompson felt he was integral to their operation and told her in no uncertain terms to get Martin to trust her by any means necessary."

Grissom knew already he didn't like where this was going to go.

Sara continued, "Alex didn't like Martin but tried to play along until one night it got to be too much for her and she broke up with him. As the story goes, Martin got pissed and did what any heartbroken guy would, he picked up another girl."

Grissom was getting a little impatient. "Is there a point to this?"

"I'm getting to that," Sara replied. "The girl he picked up was Thompson's daughter. Thompson found out and the next thing you know there's a rape allegation. Of course, it was never proven, but Thompson kept ill will towards Alex. Some believe that Thompson is the one who tipped off Martin about Alex."

Grissom furrowed his brow in anger. "Was it proven?"

Sara shook her head. "I know you know some of the rest of this. Martin became obsessed and killed Alex's grandmother. Alex, it seems, blamed Thompson for her grandmother's death and asked to be transferred. She specifically asked for Vegas a month or so later, while her transfer paperwork was being processed.

"Martin got off due to an alibi, which everyone thought was lying and then went on a killing spree, evidently for practice."

"I know most of that," Grissom said.

"But," Sara intoned, "I bet you don't know this, Thompson knew that Martin had been in Vegas for three weeks before he grabbed Alex, but never told her. He wanted to be the one to catch him. Apparently, he was using her as bait—without her or the Bureau's knowledge—to draw him out. And get this, Thompson's not even stationed in Vegas. He was here for a conference and when the whole thing hit the fan, he just sort of took over the investigation. The Bureau let him because of his history with Martin. And now, they are starting to question Thompson's motives."

"Are they handling the situation?" Grissom inquired.

"It's hard to say," she responded. "He's been MIA since you guys found Alex. Apparently, he wasn't counting on you guys finding her alive. He must be afraid of what Martin might have told her."

Grissom cocked his head in a questioning look.

"I know, it's strange," she answered.

There was a knock at the door. It was Greg.

"Gris," Greg popped his head in. "Is Alex doing better?"

"She came out of the coma earlier today," Grissom responded.

"Do you think she's up for a visitor?" he asked.

"Actually," Grissom replied, "She asked for people to wait a couple days. She was still really tired and didn't feel like entertaining quite yet."

"Got it," Greg said and popped back out.

Sara scrunched her face. "You're ok with that?" She asked Grissom.

He shrugged. "They're adults. Besides, she could do worse."

"Already has," Sara replied.

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Greg walked down the hall to the lab after popping in to Grissom's office. He, as well as the other CSIs, had a backlog of evidence to process since it was a slow night. But his thoughts were anywhere but on the evidence.

He was relieved to hear that Alex had woken up. His concentration had been lacking since they found her. He hoped his focus would return now that she was out of danger.

Before she was taken, he was contemplating reconnecting with her. Now, he knew he had to. Every day that went by, he became more and more aware of how little time each of us were really given. He was beginning to understand Warrick's reasons for his impromptu nuptials. He knew that if he didn't take the chance now, he might never be given another. All that was left for him to do was ask her and hope she still wanted him.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Grissom was once again in Alex's hospital room. Before entering, he noted the gentleman in a suit sitting outside her room and wondered about his purpose. He didn't give it too much thought, however, he was more concerned with Alex's well being.

They exchanged pleasantries but Alex could sense Grissom had something on his mind, but she wasn't sure what it was. After a few more minutes of mindless chatter, she decided to ask.

"You seem distracted," she started. "Do you have something on your mind?"

Grissom hesitated. She'd been through so much in the last couple days; he didn't want to put more on her. He knew, ultimately, that he had to tell her. "It's about Special Agent Thompson," he started.

Grissom saw the anger flashed in Alex's eyes. Before he could continue, she said, "He's missing."

Grissom was a little surprised that she knew this. Apparently, the surprise was showing on his face, because she started to give an explanation.

"Some agents were here today," she said. Grissom motioned to the gentleman sitting outside her room with his head. Alex nodded and continued, "They told me he was missing. They wanted to know what I might know about it."

"What do you know about it?" he asked.

She sighed and tears started to well up in her eyes. "More than I want to," she shakily responded.

After a pause, she continued, "Thompson is the one who got word to Martin about where I was. Apparently, Martin had been blackmailing Thompson and part of the pay off was my location."

Grissom didn't know about the blackmail and was astonished to hear of it. He was just starting to get an inkling that Sara's friends at the FBI didn't know the whole story. And he was starting to realize that Alex's captivity was enlightening to her.

"Martin told you?" Grissom guessed.

She nodded. "Martin told me a lot in between beatings." Her eyes started to fill with tears again.

Grissom was still new to the business of being a father, but tried his best. He placed his hand on hers, attempting to comfort her.

After regaining her composure, she spoke again. "Martin told me," she stopped. It was almost too much for her to say. "Martin told me that Thompson is the one who killed my grandmother and framed him. His alibi wasn't lying."

Grissom wasn't sure what to say. "Why?" was the only word he could find.

"I'm guessing you've done some research on your own?" she asked. Grissom just nodded and she continued, "You know about Thompson's daughter?" Again, Grissom nodded.

"Thompson blamed me for Martin getting to his daughter and was so angry he couldn't convince his daughter to press charges that he decided to get back at both of us," she explained. _Plus,_ she thought, _Thompson was still upset that I spurned his advances._

"Your punishment was the death of your grandmother. Martin's was supposed to be his life sentence for her murder," Grissom stated.

Alex nodded. "And Martin had evidence to prove that Thompson did it and was blackmailing him," Alex finished her explanation.

"And now Thompson is running scared, figuring that Martin told you where the evidence is. He never planned on you surviving," Grissom observed.

Alex nodded again. "Well, he was wrong about me, but right about Martin. Now the Bureau knows too. All they have to do is find him." _He just better hope the Bureau finds him first,_ she thought to herself. "But until they do," Alex mimicked Grissom and motioned to the guy outside her door with her head. "Security."

"They aren't very good," Grissom mentioned. "He didn't even ask me for ID."

Alex laughed. "You aren't that oblivious, are you?" she asked.

"What?" Grissom didn't know what she was implying.

"There isn't an agent between here and Quantico who doesn't know who you are," she enlightened him.

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Greg was counting the hours till he visited Alex. He had planned what he was going to say. He planned what he was going to wear; a black button-down, his favorite shirt that he actually ironed, and black jeans. He wanted everything to be perfect. _Now, if I could only speed up time, _he thought and then got back to work—or at least tried.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Greg decided he couldn't wait any longer. He'd visited her every day while she was in the coma, but now that she had come out, he hadn't seen her in two days. And it was killing him.

On his way to the hospital, he picked up some fresh flowers—red and white roses. He vaguely remembered her mentioning that these were her favorites. _Although she's probably got a ton of flowers,_ he thought as he bought them.

When he got to the hospital, Greg checked in with the guard outside her room. He paused for a moment, wiped the sweat off of his hands, and took a deep breath. He put the flowers behind his back and then entered.

Her face lit up when she saw him. She was very happy he'd come by. She wasn't sure if he was going to. "Hey Greg!" she greeted him.

"Alex," he replied, smiling. "How're you feeling today?" He presented her with the flowers.

"Those are beautiful!" she gasped. "Well, I was going to say crappy, but I'm much better now!"

Greg's smile widened. "I'm glad you like them."

"I'm glad you came by," she said, motioning for him to sit on the bed next to her.

"I am too," he responded, as he obliged her request. As he sat, he placed the flowers on the bedside stand. "But you know," he titled his head to the side, and playfully wagged his finger at her. "I was here every day while you were…were…" he couldn't bring himself to say the words.

"I didn't know," she said, touched that he had come by before. She placed her casted hand on his. "Thank you," she could barely get it out. Her emotions had been on overdrive since she awakened and clearly, today was going to be no exception.

"Alex," Greg started looking deep into her green eyes. "Since we ran into each other a week ago you've been on my mind constantly. And after you were abducted, all that I could think about was how I might not get the chance to ever tell you how much I care about you."

Alex could feel her cheeks getting flush. "Greg," she sighed.

"I'm sorry about the way things ended before, I just felt—"

Alex cut him off. "I know you were trying to give Gil and me time to get to know one another. And I greatly appreciate it." She smiled again and patted his hand.

"After nearly losing a close friend, and then nearly losing you," he stroked her face, lightly tracing the cut on her check. "I realized that _I_ needed time with you too and a little selfishness might not be so bad. That is, if you still want to spend time with me."

Tears started to well up in her eyes, which, she noted, was becoming a common occurrence. She grabbed his arm and pulled him close. It was her turn to initiate a kiss.

Greg had hoped for a positive response, but he never imagined this. The kiss was soft, but passionate. It was all that he had remembered from before, but better.

He sat back and smiled. "I'll take that as a yes."

She nodded. Greg leaned back in and kissed her again. He didn't want to waste any opportunity.

Outside of the room, Nick had just reached the guard. He recognized Nick, as he had visited often, and just waved him by. Nick got to the threshold of the door and stopped.

The sight of Alex and Greg kissing took him aback. He had known they went out literally once, but didn't know they had reconnected. He was disappointed, but at the same time, happy for Greg.

Nick turned around, trying to be quiet and unseen. They looked happy and he didn't want to disturb them. _I guess I'll come back later,_ he thought as he walked away.

Back inside the room, Alex and Greg picked things up right where they had left them four months ago. They both knew they had a connection and they both knew they couldn't deny it any longer.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Alex stayed in the hospital for the next week. The doctors wanted to make sure that she was going to be all right due to the extent of her injuries. Once they let her out, she still had a long road to recovery.

The first problem she encountered was where she was going to stay. There were many things she still couldn't do for herself due to the broken leg, broken arm, cracked ribs and many other bruises. Grissom, trying awkwardly to fit into his fatherly role, offered to let her stay with him. But she knew with his work schedule, he probably wouldn't be much help. The next offer came from Greg. However, she'd been to his apartment, it was too small. And, they had just started as a couple, making moving in together seem a little fast.

Catherine was the third offer she had received. It was the first one she took somewhat seriously. Alex and Lindsey shared a sisterly relationship, while she and Catherine were, what Alex would consider, good friends. Alex just didn't like the idea of putting anyone out.

She finally decided on just going back to her place and hiring an in-home aide. She knew she would ultimately be more comfortable at her own home. Plus, everyone offered to help her out and she would feel free to rearrange her furniture so she could get around.

Sara had spent the last week a little differently. She already had vacation time planned, but instead of going back to California, she headed for the other coast. She couldn't put her finger on it, maybe it was her jealousy, maybe she was the only one who didn't get sucked in by Alex's gravity, but she knew something wasn't quite right.

Sara didn't dislike Alex. Hell, she didn't even _know _Alex. She just didn't like any woman who wasn't her that got Grissom to show emotion. She needed to know, if only for herself, that Alex wasn't the dazzling jewel everyone thought she was.

Sara got off the plane at Richmond International Airport and made her way to the car rental counter. _What am I doing here?_ She thought, as the reality of the situation sunk in. _Am I really going to find anything that is going to make things better for me?_ But she knew it was too late to turn around now.

She was a little disappointed in her rental car. They didn't have much left on such short notice. She frowned at the blue Chevy Cavalier that would be her vehicle for the next few days. She hated little four bangers. She wished they had had anything with a 6V that wasn't going to cost her an arm and a leg.

She pulled out the rental car agency map as she got into the front seat. It took her a minute but she finally located Mineral on the map. _Mineral, great name for a town,_ Sara thought sarcastically. It was about a sixty-mile drive. _I hope they have a good radio station around here, _she though as she started the car and her journey.

Back in Vegas, Alex was starting her own journey. Grissom picked her up from the hospital and drove her home. Luckily her apartment was on the first floor and she wouldn't have to try to navigate any steps. Although she did have a walking cast on her leg, it was more of a fracture than a break.

Once inside, she had never been so happy to be in her sparsely furnished apartment. Before she moved she had sold almost all of her furniture. She didn't want to have to haul it halfway across the county. Since then, she'd been meaning to buy furniture, but she had just never gotten around to it. Still, it was good to be home.

Once Grissom got her in and settled he asked if there was anything else he could do.

"I don't know, Gil," she replied. "It's just good to be home."

"I can only imagine," he said, sitting down on her couch. "When is the aide coming over?"

Alex looked at the clock. "She should be here in an hour or so."

"Do you want to have dinner after?" he questioned.

"That's be nice," she responded. "I am so sick of hospital food, but don't you have to work?"

"Not today," he said. Then he added, "I've got other things to do."

Alex smiled. He had actually taken a day off for her. "Great! It's a date!"

Grissom looked at his watch, "But I do have a few errands to do before then. Are you going to be ok?"

"I'll be fine," she assured him. "Besides, if something happens, did you not notice our escort?"

Grissom nodded. He had noticed the dark sedan that was following them. He knew it was a couple agents. With Thompson still missing, precautions had to be taken.

Grissom excused himself and Alex was, for the first time in almost two weeks, alone. It was actually quite refreshing.

She hobbled around her apartment, making sure everything was in place. She knew she wasn't going to be alone for long. She didn't want to look like a slob when the in-home aide came over. Although, she knew the purpose of the aide was to help her around the house.

In Virginia, Sara was just coming around another house. It was a two-story brick house on St. Mary's Avenue in Mineral—the house where Alex grew up. Sara had stopped at a local diner and gotten directions to the house. In a town where the population was 450, people were quite friendly.

She drove past the house, missing it the first time down the street. She was still trying to think of a cover story to get in the door and ask the neighbors questions without raising too many suspicions.

This time she pulled in the driveway. She checked herself in the visor mirror and then got out of the car. She walked up to the door and knocked, not knowing what to expect. _I hope I can pull this off,_ she though as she heard someone on the other side of the door.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Sara pulled into the parking lot of the motel. She still couldn't believe all she had found out. Tomorrow she was going to go to the local library. She was hopeful that they still had copies of old newspapers. Records could be sealed, but news articles could not be unwritten.

She grabbed her suitcase and the brown paper bag from the seat next to her and went into the room. She threw her suitcase on the chair in the corner, but placed the brown paper bag on the dresser. She grabbed the ice bucket and headed for the ice machine.

Once back in the room, she grabbed a plastic cup, put a few ice cubes it in and reached for the brown paper bag. Inside was a bottle of vodka. She poured almost a full glass and then plopped down on the bed. She took a swallow and turned on the TV.

_What the hell am I doing here?_ She thought, looking around the non-descript motel room. She took another drink. _Have I really sunk this low? _She put the cup to her lips and started to flip channels. _This isn't going to change a damn thing. _She tilted the cup up and had another sip.

Before she knew it, the bottle was gone and she had passed out on the bed.

Back in Vegas, Alex too, had passed out on her bed, but from exhaustion. Her first day out was almost more than she could handle. She had met the aide, a late thirty-something year old woman named Jana Sparks. Jana was genuinely nice; Alex just knew it would take her some time to get used to her.

After her meeting with Jana, Grissom had taken Alex to a casual restaurant for diner. They would have gone somewhere nicer, but Alex didn't think she had anything decent to wear that would fit over her casts. However, anywhere was better than the hospital.

After diner, Grissom and Alex spent a few hours talking and rearranging furniture. Even with the little furniture she had, she couldn't decide how best to put it. She wanted to make sure she could get around. Of course, Grissom did most of the work, but Alex tried her best to help.

Once Grissom left, Alex couldn't help but fall into bed. She hadn't done this much in a while. And having to lug around her casted leg was taking a bigger toll than she had planned.

Grissom wasn't feeling tired after he left Alex's, so he decided to go into the lab. He always had paperwork he could catch up on.

After he'd been in his office for a couple hours, there was a knock on the door. It was Greg.

"Hey Gris, you got a sec?" Greg asked, sticking his head in Grissom's office.

"Sure, Greg," he replied, waving Greg in. He would welcome any distraction from the paperwork.

"I know we haven't had time to talk recently due to work, but I just wanted to make sure that things were ok," Greg started.

"Things?" Grissom cocked a questioning eyebrow, although he knew what Greg was getting at.

"You know," Greg said, giving a sly smile. "Between you and me and Alex."

"Greg, you and Alex are adults," Grissom started.

Greg interrupted, "I know, boss, but Alex is your daughter."

"You and I might not always see eye to eye, but you're smart, honest and I know where you work," Grissom replied.

Greg feigned embarrassment, "Aw shucks, thanks Gris."

Grissom hardened the expression on his face, "Seriously, though, if you hurt her, I know how to make you disappear."

Greg let out a little chuckle. He knew it was a bold attempt on Grissom's part to be humorous, but it was kind of creepy. Partly because Greg knew Grissom could do it.

"Does this mean I can call you dad?" Greg joked.

Grissom's expression was all the answer he needed.

"No, then," Greg deadpanned. "Ok, back to work for me," he said and left.

Grissom paused for a moment before getting back to work. He, at this point, really didn't have any feelings about Greg and Alex. That might change, however, if things between them ever got serious.

The next morning, a serious headache is what Sara had when she awoke. _How much did I drink last night?_ She thought, while fishing in her bag for some aspirin.

After finding some, she got the answer to her question. She found the empty bottle of vodka as she reached for the plastic cup to get some water. _I've really got to quit doing this._

She stripped, still wearing the clothes she had on the night before, and took a shower. She didn't want to look too bad when she went to the library. It was a small town, people had noticed her. And they would definitely notice if she looked hung over.

The shower didn't make her feel much better, but she had work to do. She got dressed and headed back towards town. She knew she had a long day ahead of her tracking down articles from almost a decade ago. She only hoped this would somehow satisfy her and allow her to get on with her life no matter how mundane.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

When Sara returned to Vegas she still had a couple days before she had to return to the lab. She didn't want anyone to know she was back yet, or else someone might suspect something. So she mainly stayed in her apartment watching TV and partaking in her favorite addiction.

Her second night back, she had a brilliant idea. She decided to confront Alex with the mother load she had hit in Mineral. This was actually her second brilliant idea of the night. Her first was to let Grissom in on the knowledge she had gathered, but that was two drinks ago when she could think more clearly. Now, letting the alcohol do her thinking, Sara just wanted to take Alex down a peg or two.

Sara drove around Alex's complex for a few minutes, trying to find the right building. When she finally spotted it, she pulled crookedly into a parking space. She was lucky that she didn't hit the car parked next to hers. She got out of the car, the cold night air sobering her only a little and unsteadily walked to the door.

"Alex!" she called, knocking loudly on the door, unaware of what time it was. "Alex!"

The knocking startled Alex awake. She looked at the alarm clock. _One a.m.! Who could it be?_ She thought, struggle to get out of bed.

Sara was not happy that it was taking so long for the door to be answered. She started hitting the door, palm open. "Alex!" she called, oblivious to the porch lights that were coming on. "Stupid apartments," Sara muttered. "No freaking door bell."

Alex struggled to get to the door. She knew her neighbors would not like this late night disruption. She knew the voice sounded female, but she didn't recognize it. She couldn't imagine who would be causing such a commotion this late at night.

She peered through the peephole. All she saw was the back of a woman she didn't recognize. She opened the door slightly.

"Hello?" she questioned the unfamiliar woman.

"Alex," Sara turned around. "Can we talk?"

When Sara turned around, Alex recognized her. "Ms. Sidle!"

Sara was taken aback at the formal salutation. "It's Sara," she said, shifting a folder restlessly from one hand to the next. "Can we talk?" she repeated her question.

"Yeah, ok," Alex replied, wondering if something had happened to Grissom. "Is everything ok?" Alex opened the door and let Sara in.

"Well, that depends on you," Sara said accusingly.

Alex noticed the shift in Sara's tone. "Well, then, what was so important that you had to rush over here in the middle of the night?" Alex angrily shot back.

Sara handed Alex the folder. Alex opened the folder and flipped through the photocopied news articles. Her eyes started to fill with tears. "Where did you get these?"

Sara leaned in towards Alex. "Mineral," Sara smugly answered.

As Sara leaned in, Alex could smell the alcohol on her breath. "Are you drunk?"

"I am not drunk," Sara said with indignation. Then shifted the conversation back to Alex. "So, what do you have to say about those?"

Alex didn't feel any explanation was needed or would really be heard by Sara in the state she was in. Still, she had heard many things about Sara from Catherine and Grissom. She didn't want to make Sara any more of an enemy that she already appeared. Plus, she didn't want to let Sara leave in the condition she was in.

"You want an explanation?" Alex asked.

Sara nodded.

"Well, have a seat, this might take a while," Alex replied, hobbling to the kitchen to make some coffee. She knew Sara needed to sober up.

Alex tottered back in to the living room and sat in an easy chair that was kiddy-corner to Sara.

"So, let's have it, Lexa" Sara demanded, putting special emphasis on the name.

Alex cringed at the sound of "Lexa." Then she sighed. When her records were sealed and her name changed, she thought she'd never have to rehash the events of her teenage years. "I had issues as a teenager," Alex started. "My grandmother raised me under an iron fist. When I turned 13 I decided I had enough.

"I started getting everyone to call me Lexa. I thought it sounded so much cooler than Alexandria," she rolled her eyes at the thought of those years. "And then I started hanging around with a bad crowd."

"Drugs?" Sara patronizingly asked.

Alex shook her head. "No, I was never into drugs—or alcohol. All my friends did, but I just couldn't bring myself to try any of it. I did however do other things with them: petty theft, vandalism and the like. But I never got caught."

Sara had pretty much guessed all of this. She knew the first crime Alex was convicted of was not a starting point; it was an ending point.

"My grandmother pushed me to get a job when I was 15, and I started as a bookkeeper for the local grocery store. It was there that my 'talents' were first noticed by this Mafioso-wannabe who knew how to sweet-talk a teenage girl hoping for bigger and better than Mineral, Virginia. Little did I know, he was mixed up in a local money-laundering scheme.

"He, trying my intelligence, got me to cook books for him. It wasn't long before I was caught. I used to have a big mouth and I let slip what I was doing to the wrong person."

"What about the assault charge?" Sara asked plainly.

"Hang on," Alex replied, going back to the kitchen and getting a cup of coffee. She carefully got back to the living room and handed the cup to Sara. "Drink," she commanded.

Sara, at first, wouldn't drink. "I'm good," she said, placing the cup down.

"You drink or I don't continue," Alex responded.

"Fine," Sara replied begrudgingly, taking a drink.

"The assault charge was not my fault. I was defending myself against Mr. Mafioso when he found out it was me who took the operation down," Alex explained.

"Serves him right," Sara said between sips. "Taking advantage of a teenager!"

"Serves me right," she corrected, shaking her head at the past she thought she'd out run. "Anyway, I had a spotless record before that, I was 16 and I didn't kill anyone, so they decided to go lenient on me. Plus, I know my grandmother pulled every string she could. I got three months in Juvie and probation until I was 18."

"What about the name change? The articles call you 'Lexa Corbett'," Sara questioned.

Alex shook her head again. "That goes way back," she started. "Shortly after I was born, my grandfather's brother fought my grandmother for custody of me. My grandfather's family hadn't liked my grandmother for a long time and said some pretty hateful things during the custody hearings.

"Ultimately, custody was given to my grandmother and, out of spite, she changed her name and my name back to her maiden name, Corbett. I started going by Alex again when I returned to school following my stint in Juvie. Those three months were enough to make me never want to break the law again. And then after I graduated high school, my grandmother let me change my name back to Hart, hoping it would make things better for college."

Sara nodded in understanding. The system sucked. And she started to feel a little foolish as she sobered up from the coffee. "Does Grissom know?"

Alex wasn't surprised at the question, but the motivation for Sara's visit had finally become clear. Jealousy. One of the things she had been apprised of was Sara's feelings for Grissom, and this was Sara's way of trying to cause a rift between Alex and Grissom.

"He knows," Alex responded.

Sara seemed disappointed at Alex's answer, but satisfied. She set down the empty cup and started to get up. "Well," her foolishness was again catching up with her, "I should be going."

Alex noticed Sara's unsteadiness. "Are you ok to drive? Why don't you crash on the couch?"

Sara was going to argue until her exhaustion and the rest of the alcohol caught up with her. She didn't need to be pulled over for drunk driving—again. "O-okay," she responded sitting back down. Alex's kindness caught her a little off guard as well. Most people probably would have kicked her out by now.

Alex got up to get Sara an extra pillow and blanket. _Dammit,_ she scolded herself, _I should just kick her out. Why do I always do this sort of stuff? Am I that afraid to say no? That someone might not like me?_

When she got back to the living room, Sara was already sound asleep on the couch. Alex gently lifted Sara's head and placed the pillow under it. Then she clumsily covered Sara with the blanket.

_I just don't know what he sees in her,_ she thought as she shuffled back to bed, exhausted. It had been an interesting night.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Sara awoke the next morning to an unfamiliar smell in an unfamiliar apartment. She was groggy and a little confused. The events of the night before were still a little hazy. She wasn't sure what time it was, so she looked at her watch. _6:30 a.m.! _

"Hello?" Sara called out.

"In here," Alex called from around the wall in the kitchen.

Sara stood and stretched. Obviously, whoever was here with her knew her. The voice didn't sound surprised at her calling. Sara's head throbbed a little. Last night was vaguely coming back to her but when she saw Alex in the kitchen the memory flooded her mind. She also found the source of the smell.

"I made pancakes," Alex said, presenting Sara with a plate. "I was going to make eggs too, but I wasn't sure if you ate eggs."

Sara, suddenly feeling ravenous, took the plate and sat at the table. "Why weren't you sure if I ate eggs?" Sara asked, a little confused.

"You're a vegetarian, aren't you?" Alex responded.

Sara nodded. _How does she know?_ She wondered.

Alex could see the question in Sara's eyes. "Gil told me you were a vegetarian, but I wasn't sure which type you are."

_Wow, he finally remembered, _Sara thought. "I eat eggs," Sara informed her. "Just no meat."

They sat in silence for a few minutes eating. Neither knew what to say to the other. Their silence was finally interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Wonder who that is?" Alex said, as she got up and made her way to the door.

Alex peered out the peephole. She recognized Nick, but not the guy with him. She opened the door.

"Hey Nick!" Alex greeted him, giving an awkward hug.

"Hey Alex," Nick replied. "I'm sorry to bother you so early."

"Oh, it's not a problem," she said ushering the two men in. "I was up anyway. Who's your friend?"

"Oh, sorry, I forgot you guys haven't met yet," Nick replied. "Alex, this is Warrick Brown."

Warrick was taken aback at Alex's appearance. He had heard about Alex's ordeal and knew she was bruised, but not like this. Her face was still slightly swollen, the bruise across her cheek still quite red. Black, blue, and green marks painted what was visible of her arms and neck. He was amazed she got around at all with a cast on her right leg and one on her left arm.

Alex stuck out her uncasted right hand for him to shake. "Nice to meet you finally, Warrick. I've heard many good things about you." She smiled.

Warrick smiled back and shook her hand. "It's nice to meet you as well." Even with the bruises, he could see why Greg—and Nick—couldn't stop talking about her.

"So what's up?" Alex asked, figuring this wasn't a social visit since both had on their badges and guns.

"Well, we were wondering if Sara was here," Nick explained.

"She hasn't answered her cell or beeper in about eight hours, nor has she returned any of our voice mails. So we were getting worried. We finally tracked the GPS on her phone to your parking lot," Warrick added.

Sara heard Warrick from the kitchen and patted down her pockets. _Damn,_ she thought. _I did leave the phone in the car._

"I recognized the complex as yours and thought maybe she was here," Nick finished.

"Um, well…" Alex hesitated, not knowing if Sara wanted them to know she was here.

"I'm here," Sara said, coming around the corner.

Relief and bewilderment washed over Nick and Warrick. While both were glad she was all right, neither was sure why Sara would be here.

"So why the search party?" Sara, annoyed, asked, ignoring the obvious question from Nick and Warrick.

"Another tech has quit and so Greg's been pulling double duty. Grissom was going to see if you would be willing to come back to work tonight," Nick answered.

_Of course, work,_ Sara thought. "So he sent two CSIs after me?" She was irked.

"Well, you never don't answer your phone," Nick said, trying to diffuse her growing annoyance. "Especially when it's the lab. And then when you hadn't returned the message, we thought something had happened."

Sara knew she shouldn't be upset, at least not at them. If any of the other CSIs hadn't responded to the contact attempts, she would have thought the same thing. She was more upset at herself, for being caught here because there would inevitably be questions she didn't know how to answer. She took a deep breath and tried to calm herself.

"I'll be in," Sara responded, once she was sure she could answer calmly.

"We'll let him know," Nick said, but didn't leave.

The four of them stood awkwardly in the foyer of Alex's apartment. Nick and Warrick were hoping Sara would leave so they could ask Alex why Sara was there. Sara was hoping Nick and Warrick would leave so she could come up with a good cover story that Alex would agree to.

After a minute or two of the four of them staring at each other, Alex finally broke the silence. "You guys want some pancakes?" she asked Warrick and Nick.


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Nick and Warrick didn't stay for pancakes. They were still on the clock and now that Sara had been found, they had to get back to the lab. Sara was relieved when they left.

She was still anxious about how Alex would respond when asked about her visit. "So, um, what are you going to say about our breakfast when someone asks?"

"What do you mean?" Alex was playing dumb.

Sara was not amused. "You know what I mean."

"If you're asking am I going to say that you were drunk and came over here trying to rip my character apart," Alex paused, trying to sweat Sara a little. "The answer is no."

Sara breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you," she said.

"Look, Sara, you don't have to like me and I'm not doing this for you," Alex replied. _I'm doing it for me. _"I'm doing this because you mean something to the people who mean something to me."

Sara's mind fluttered. _Does she mean Grissom, or just everyone in general?_ She wondered. "Ok," she answered. "Well, I better get going."

"Yes, you should," Alex agreed coldly.

Sara started to walk towards the door. Then she turned around and asked, "So what _are_ you going to tell people?"

Alex was angered at Sara's gall, but knew she didn't want to answer questions about last night either. Alex paused to think for a moment. "You got back early, heard I was out of the hospital, called to check up on me and I invited you for breakfast," she answered.

Sara was a little surprised she had come up with an answer so quickly. _She must've been thinking about this._ "What about the time? I mean, it isn't even seven yet."

"We're all early risers or late nighters," she said.

Sara nodded. "Thank you…again."

Alex dismissed the 'thank you' with a slight nod of the head and then Sara left. Alex went into the kitchen to clean up, glad that Sara was gone. And glad Sara forgot her folder with the articles. She was hopeful they were Sara's only copies and soon they would be no more.

After finishing her cleaning, Alex fell asleep watching TV on the couch. Seemingly becoming a pattern, she was awakened from her sleep by a knock on the door. Albeit this one was much more civil.

"Hold on!" she called, struggling to clear her mind of sleep.

She looked at the clock as she walked to the door. _Eleven-thirty! Man, I slept a good while. I wonder who's knocking? Maybe it's my lunch date, just a little early._

She peered out her peephole, but it was blocked. All she could see were some flowers. She smiled as she opened the door. _It is my lunch date._

As she started to open the door, the person on the other side pushed it forcefully into her, throwing her off balance. She fell to the ground, her cane sliding just out of reach.

"Hey!" she yelled as she fell. Then she looked up and her eyes widened. "How—how?" she stammered.

"Distraction is the name of the game," Thompson answered, shutting the door.

"What…I…I already told the FBI where Martin hid the evidence!" she said, trying to crawl away from him.

"You and I both know you didn't tell them where _all_ the evidence is," Thompson replied. He pulled a gun the back of his belt and pointed at her. "Now you're going to tell me where the rest of it is."

"I-I don't know!" Alex truthfully responded. She didn't know what Thompson was talking about.

H saw her trying to crawl away and stopped her. He kneeled down, straddling her waist, pinning her arms behind her. He put the gun barrel against her skin, right between her eyes.

"I don't believe you!" he shouted. "Tell me where the tapes ARE!" He pressed the barrel harder. "I have no qualms about killing you. I'm already dead."

Alex knew he wasn't bluffing. The FBI had found the evidence that proved Thompson had killed Alex's grandmother. He was going down for one murder; a second wouldn't make much difference in sentencing.

"I really don't know!" she cried.

Outside the door, he heard her cry. Then he heard a man respond.

"I am not playing with you!"

He reached down and tried the doorknob. It turned. Luckily his shift had gone long and he was just getting off. He still had his service revolver. He pulled it out and slowly opened the door, trying to make as little noise as possible.

As the door came open, he pointed his gun down the hall, right at Thompson. Thompson, whose back was towards the door didn't see him. Alex, with her eyes squeezed tightly shut, didn't see him either.

"You better drop that weapon!" he called down the hall.

Alex opened her eyes and saw who it was, just as Thompson turned to look. He didn't take the gun off of her.

"Who the fuck are you?" he sneered, not even caring that a gun was pointed at him.

He couldn't believe Thompson didn't remember him. _Jackass!_ "I'm Nick Stokes with the Las Vegas Crime Lab," he responded. "Now drop your weapon and let Alex go."

Thompson snorted. "Not even a cop!" He turned back towards Alex, who was scared speechless. "Now tell me what I want to know, or your boyfriend here is going to see your brain splattered on the floor!"

"I will shoot if you do not drop your weapon," Nick said, keeping his gun aimed at Thompson.

"You'd better shoot then, because I'm not dropping my weapon," Thompson taunted Nick, not moving from his position.

Alex clenched her eyes shut again. This scene was too surreal for her. In less than two weeks, this was the second time her life lie in the hands of a mad man determined to kill her. This time, however, there was a witness.

Nick was hesitant. He didn't want to shoot Thompson. He hadn't ever really wanted to shoot anyone. But he wasn't about to let Thompson shoot Alex.

"Drop. Your. Wea-" Nick started, but Thompson had gotten fed up with Nick's orders and turned his gun on Nick.

As soon as Nick saw the barrel of Thompson's gun, he shot. He hit Thompson in the shoulder, not wanting to kill him. This only angered Thompson more and he raised his gun to shoot again.

This time Nick shot to kill and Thompson fell to the side, freeing Alex.

It took her a moment to realize what had happened. At first, she thought Thompson had finally pulled the trigger on her. She opened her eyes after the second shot and saw Thompson slumped to the side. Her dam of control had finally broken and she started to cry all the tears she had held back.

Nick holstered his gun and rushed to Alex. He crouched down next to her and helped her sit up. She threw her arms around him and buried her head in his chest. He could feel her sobs all the way to his soul. He understood her pain. He put his arms around her and tried to console her.

"It's alright, Alex," he said, stroking her hair. "It's ok."

The FBI agents came running after they had heard the gunshots. When Nick saw them enter, he was furious.

"Where were you guys?" he shouted. "Thompson could have killed her!"

But the agents were all excuses. Thompson's distraction had been successful. The stopped making excuses and radioed for back up and an ambulance.

Alex couldn't think. She couldn't feel the aches of her body. She couldn't hear the argument between Nick and the agents. All she could do was sob and hang onto Nick for dear life.


	22. Chapter 22

Author's note: Just a small re-write. Thanks to Lanta for pointing out my error. I forgot that Catherine shot Syd Goggle! Added a little to the Epilogue too.

Chapter 22

As soon as Greg heard about what had happened, he dropped everything and left the lab. When he got to Alex's apartment, she was still holding onto Nick. Her sobs had lost their sound, but were still shaking her body. He was startled at seeing Alex hugging Nick so tightly, feeling a slight twinge of jealously. He knew, though, that Nick had just saved her life.

Greg cautiously made his way past the corner tending to the dead body, and kneeled down on the opposite side of Alex from Nick.

"Alex," Greg said softly, putting his hand on her back.

Alex turned and looked at him. Then she removed her arms from around Nick and threw them around Greg. Her actions were so quick; it startled Greg and almost knocked him over. Her sobs started again.

"Shhhh," he whispered in his ear. "It's alright." He pulled her close. "I'm here."

Nick felt a pang in his heart the moment she left his arms. He stood up and turned around, not wanting to see them hold each other. He knew they cared deeply for one another. He just couldn't help but think if only he'd met her first.

He walked into the living room and sat on the couch. He took a deep breath, not realizing that Alex had been holding him as much as he had been holding her. He started to shake a little now that he was by himself and tears started to form at the corners of his eyes.

_I-I just killed a man¸_ he finally realized. It was something he had never done before and now hoped it was something he would never have to do again. _I didn't have a choice,_ he rationalized. _It was him or me. Or her._ Nick squeezed his eyes shut, trying to fight off the tears and took a few more deep breaths.

Back in the hall, Grissom and Catherine had shown up, just minutes apart. Both had been careful moving down the hall to where Alex and Greg sat. Alex's sobs had again subsided and just the shaking remained. Catherine and Grissom both held grave concern over the earlier events.

Greg looked at Grissom, his face full of anguish. "She hasn't moved since Nick shot him."

"Where is Nick?" Catherine asked Greg.

"I didn't see where he went," Greg responded.

But Nick had heard Catherine's question from the other room. He stood, wiping away any trace of tears, and walked back into the hall. "I'm here," he said.

Catherine went and stood next to Nick. "Are you ok?" She, too, had shot someone in the line of duty. She knew, criminal or not, taking a human life was not easy.

"I'm," he hesitated. "Shaken, but ok," he finished.

"If you need to talk," Catherine offered.

"Well, I know I'll have to," he said, trying to make a slight joke. He was referring to the department's policy on shootings. He knew he would have to see the department's counselor.

She smiled and then, sensing his emotional turmoil, she hugged him. Her display of affection had caught Nick off guard and his eyes started to tear up again. He pulled away, quickly wiping away the evidence hoping it went unseen. But Catherine had already noticed. She didn't say anything; she knew that's what he would want.

Between the four of them—Greg, Nick, Grissom and Catherine—they calmed and comforted Alex enough to where she would move. They helped her to the couch where she was convinced to give her statement to the agents handling the case. The case was pretty clear-cut. Everyone had already been looking for Thompson.

Nick's gun was taken for evidence and he was assigned to lab duty. Grissom offered him a few days off if he'd while the department handled the shooting and he took them. He needed some time to think, to get his feelings in order. So much had happened to him recently, it was overwhelming.

The other three all reiterated their offers of a temporary place to stay to Alex. She was again grateful and this time, she was going to take one of them up. She couldn't stomach the idea of staying in her apartment for a while. The blood would take forever to clean up.

"So, it's really ok if I stay with you?" Alex asked.

"Yes, it's really ok," Catherine reassured her. "We've got plenty of room at the house and Lindsey will love having you there."

"You know, I haven't seen her since we were supposed to go out. She's not mad at me is she?" Alex knew it was silly to think this, but Lindsey was a teenager.

Catherine gave her a disbelieving look. "What! Lindsey was never mad. She's glad you're ok."

Alex found enough strength for a slight smile. "Ok, well, I need to go pack some things then," Alex said as she hobbled to the bedroom to find her suitcase and some clothes.

Greg followed her into the bedroom. Being mindful that Grissom was there, he left the door open. "You sure you don't want to stay with me?"

She turned to look him straight in the eye. "Greg, it's not that I don't want to. It's just..." she was trying to think of the best way to put it.

Greg nodded, he knew what she was trying to say. "The not rushing it thing," he finished her thought.

"Yes," she agreed and gave him a quick kiss. Then she went back to packing.

AS they were leaving, Catherine noticed a couple magazines on Alex's coffee table that she had read. "Do you want me to bring these too?" Catherine asked as she pointed at the magazines.

"Yeah, I haven't had a chance to read them yet," Alex replied.

Catherine gathered a few in a pile, not noticing the manila folder between two of the magazines. She helped Alex with her bag and they left for her house. They made plans for Grissom to come over for dinner. He hadn't seen Lindsey in a while either.

Greg headed back to the lab. There was still a lot of evidence that need to be processed. He knew Alex was being taken care of by Catherine. He would see her soon enough.

Later that evening, dinner was over and Alex had finally finished unpacking. Lindsey was asleep and Catherine was at work. She plopped down on the bed and closed her eyes.

Her mind wouldn't stop racing. Twice in less than a month her life had been in danger. Twice in less than a month, her life had been spared. _How lucky can one girl get?_ She mused to herself.

And then, thinking about luck, she thought about finding Gil. In an odd way, she had Thompson to thank. If he hadn't killer her grandmother, Alex never would have found the letter that led her to Vegas. And if she'd never come to Vegas in search of Gil, she never would have met Greg. Or Nick.

With the threat to her life over, she could now start living.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Epilogue

Catherine got home sometime after the sun rose, but she wasn't tired. She decided to read for a little while and remembered seeing an interesting headline on one of Alex's magazines. As she picked up the stack, the manila folder fell and its contents spilled out.

"What the?" Catherine quietly exclaimed bending down to pick up the scattered papers.

She noticed they were newspaper articles but didn't pique her interest until she saw someone she recognized in one of the pictures. _That looks like Alex,_ she thought, studying the picture more thoroughly.

After reading the articles, Catherine just shook her head. _Everyone has a past, some just a little more interesting than others_, she thought as she tore the pages up and threw them away. She knew she had no right to judge anyone's past.

Nick ended up taking more than a few days; he took almost two weeks. He had stayed around Vegas for the first part, while the shooting was being cleared. The last half he went to visit his parents in Texas. He hoped his dad might be able to offer him some clarity on the whole situation. When he got back to Vegas, life was back to normal—well, as normal as it could be.


End file.
